Emotional experiences

A positive experience, for most people, will yield feelings of happiness, satisfaction, surprise and pleasure. It will also yield behavior in accord with those feelings or emotions.

Negative experiences, on the other hand, typically bring forth feelings of mediocrity, anger, disappointment and anxiety. The outward expression of these emotions is also present in the behaviors that follow.

The fact that the emotional nature of any given experience governs the behavior that follows sheds bright light on the word-of-mouth phenomenon.

If one's behavior is in accordance with a recent experience and that experience is positive, then the behaviors that person displays are likely to influence others in a positive way. This also rings true if the experience is negative.

A recently published study by the University of Rochester School of Medicine identifies emotion as an essential component of the decision-making process. The study concludes that if you eliminate emotional guiding factors, it